Galvanizing flux



United States Patent 1 2,829,077 GALVANIZING FLUX David B. Speed, Cleveland, Ohio, assignor to E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company, Wilmington, Del., a corporation of Delaware No Drawing. Application October 30, 1956 Serial No. 619,125 Claims. (Cl. 148 -23) This invention relates to galvanizing fluxes and is more particularly directed to compositions adapted to be used in a flux wash and comprising, preferably zinc ammonium chloride and the condensation product of oleyl alcohol with about mols of ethylene oxide.

It is customary to prepare metals prior to galvanizing and prior to introduction into a molten metal bath by passing them through an aqueous solution which is called a flux wash. Such solutions customarily contain fluxing materials such as zinc chloride, ammonium chloride, and zinc ammonium chloride.

It is important, especially in some of the new highspecd continuous galvanizing processes, that the flux wash thoroughly wet the surface of the metal and yet the solution must not "foam excessively. If there is any considerable foaming in the flux Wash, the high speeds at which the metal is traveling cause an excessive drag-out from the flux wash bath.

I have found that improved flux Wash compositions can be prepared from ammonium chloride, zinc chloride, zinc ammonium chloride, and other such reflux compositions by the addition thereto of the condensation product of oleyl alcohol with about 10 mols of ethylene oxide.

Most preferred for flux wash compositions or the invention are the so-called high ratio zinc ammonium chlorides. These are flux compositions in which the weight ratio of ZnCl :NH C1 ranges from 1.27:1 to 1.35:1. These are normally made up into prewash fluxes of about 122 Baum strength and used at temperatures around 180 F.

The flux material such as zinc ammonium chloride is mixed with the copolymerization product of oleyl alcohol with ethylene oxide. The oleyl alcohol used is preferably the technical grade which is a mixture ofsaturated and unsaturated alcohols ranging from about 8 to 22 carbon atoms and prepared by the sodium reduction of a suitable oil such as, preferably, sperm oil.

The oleyl alcohol is reacted with ethylene oxide as shown in Schoeller and Wittwer U. S. Patent 1,970,578, dated August 21, 1934. About 10 mols of ethylene oxide are used for each mol of oleyl alcohol. This can obviously vary somewhat, say, from 8 to 12mo1s, though it is preferred to use 10mols. I

The oleyl alcohol-ethylene oxide condensation product is preferably added to a concentrated solution of the flux material such as zinc ammonium chloride, or such as ammonium chloride and zinc chloride. The amount of the condensation product most broadly is about 0.02 to 0.5 gram per hundred grams of zinc ammonium chloride or other fluxing material. More narrowly, it is preferred to use from about 0.02 to 0.2 gram of the polymer per hundred grams of the flux material.

In order that the invention may be better understood, reference should be had to the following illustrative example.

Example I Zinc ammonium chloride was prepared as a 50-55 Baum solution of zinc ammonium chloride having a ZnCl :NH Cl weight ratio of 1.3:1. To this aqueous solution there was added a condensation product of ethylene oxide with oleyl alcohol at the rate of 0.4 gram per 100 grams of zinc ammonium chloride.

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The aqueous solution thus prepared can be diluted to 12.2 Baum to make a flux wash containing about 24.5 percent by Weight of zinc ammonium chloride.

The oleyl alcohol used is a mixture of saturated and unsaturated alcohols of 8 to 22 carbon atoms. This is sold commercially as technical oleyl alcohol. The technical grade oleyl alcohol was a mixture of saturated and unsaturated alcohols obtained by the sodium reduction of sperm oil and had the following approximate composition:

The oleyl alcohol was reacted with 10 mols of ethylene oxide for each mol of alcohol as shown in U. S..Patent The oleyl alcohol-ethylene oxide condensation product can be added as a 20 percent solution in ethyl alcohol at the same rate as given above, if desired.

Instead of using high ratio zinc ammonium chloride as above described, compositions adapted for the preparation of flux .washes can be made up by using an oleyl alcoholethylene oxide condensation product at the rates as above described with zinc chloride, with ammonium chloride, or with low ratio zinc ammonium chloride.

I claim:

1. A galvanizing flux consisting essentially of a fluxing material selected from the group consisting of ammonium chloride, zinc chloride, and zinc ammonium chloride and the condensation product of oleyl alcohol with about 10 mols of ethylene oxide, flux containing about 0.02 to 0.5 gram of condensation product per grams of fluxing material.

2. A galvanizing flux consisting essentially of zinc ammonium chloride and the condensation product of oleyl alcohol with about 10 mols of ethylene oxide, such flux containing about 0.02 to 0.5 gram of condensation prodnot per 100 grams of fluxing material.

3. A galvanizing flux consisting essentially of zinc ammonium chloride with a ZnCl :NH Cl weight ratio of 1.27:1 to 1.35:1 and the condensation product of oleyl alcohol with about 10 mols of ethylene oxide, such flux containing about 0.02 to 0.5 gram of condensation product per 100 grams of fluxing material.

4. A galvanizing flux consisting essentially of zinc ammonium chloride with a ZnCl :NH Cl weight ratio of 1.27:1 to 1.35:1 and 0.02 to 0.2 gram per 100 grams of zinc ammonium chloride of the condensation product of oleyl alcohol with about 10 mols of ethylene oxide, the oleyl alcohol being a technical oleyl alcohol containing alcohols ranging from 8 to 22 carbon atoms.

5. A flux wash for application to metals prior to galvanizing consisting essentially of an aqueous bath con taining zinc ammonium chloride and the condensation product 'of oleyl alcohol with about 10 mols of ethylene oxide, such flux containing on a dry weight basis about 0.02 to 0.5 gram of condensation product per 100 grams of fluxing material.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,970,578 Schoeller et a1 '.....Aug.21, 1934 

1. A GALVANIZING FLUX CONSISTING ESSENTIALLY OF A FLUXING MATERIAL SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF AMMONIUM CHLORIDE, ZINC CHLORIDE, AND ZINC AMMONIUM CHLORIDE AND THE CONDENSATION PRODUCT OF OLEYL ALCOHOL WITH ABOUT 10 MOLS OF ETHYLENE OXIDE, FLUX CONTAINING ABOUT 0.02 TO 0.5 GRAM OF CONDENSATION PRODUCT PER 100 GRAMS OF FLUXING MATERIAL. 